


plot bunnies

by n_kei



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-08-08
Updated: 2019-03-17
Packaged: 2019-06-23 16:57:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 14,009
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15610794
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/n_kei/pseuds/n_kei
Summary: A (growing) collection of plot bunnies.As plot bunnies typically go, this will multiply exponentially. You've been cautioned.(Heed to the beginning of each chapter for additional tags and warnings. Happy reading~)





	1. the eve

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Pairing: Jaeyong  
> Rating: Mature  
> AN: Do yourself a favour and play The Eve by EXO as you read this ;)

When the guitar chords kick in, Taeyong starts with a body roll, a hand between his legs, the other arm pulling his hair back sexily, revealing a pale neck. His head tilts to the side and he shoots the audience with a smouldering look.

The hand comes around and he licks the pale digit as he twists, melts, and struts towards stage centre. Sweat trickles down his back- he's been dancing for three songs now and the spotlight is relentless, but he’s got one last song to perform and, judging by the weight on his leather belt, he’s raked in a good amount.

Rolling his hips sensually and popping his chest to the downbeats, he meets warm brown eyes.

The same man who has not stopped staring since he started his number, seated by the back and slowly moving up with every performance. He’s completely enraptured. Taeyong smirks.

He turns and bends double, gripping his ankles and giving the audience a healthy view of his backside, before sliding onto the ground and twisting, shooting the man with an alluring smile. The man stiffens. Taeyong smirks harder.

The vocals soar into a slow ballad and he narrows his eyes. He slips off the platform, landing confidently before spinning, dazzling the audience, then walks over to the seated man-

The beat drops, and with it, so does Taeyong, right in front of the man. The man gulps.

Taeyong rolls his hips slowly, tightly, for the next sixteen counts. Neither of them break the stare- despite the increasing volume of the screaming and cheering around them. The man’s eyes narrow, turning dark and liquid with want. Taeyong stands up and twirls around and body rolls against the man, blows a kiss his way, before strutting off.

Being a professional dancer pays off. His sharp, clean movements begs for everyone’s attention and he gets it- more and more bills are tucked to his belt, clipped to the suspenders. The second chorus escalates and he finds his partner in crime, Yuta, and the two meet eyes and smirk in unison.

Their hands are over each other in moments, Yuta body rolls into the tight space between them, pressing their torsos together deliciously, and the crowd goes wild. Taeyong flicks his hair back and meets the warm brown eyes again, which are now twisted in a cool frown, a poor attempt to seem unaffected. Taeyong shoots a wink at the man and finishes the song.

The cheering rings in his ears as he stumbles back into the dressing room. Yuta comes in after him, slicking his hair back and complaining about the additional heat from the summer weather. Taeyong catches his breath with a small smile and nods in agreement. They pull the bills off each other and Taeyong makes two neat piles on the counter beside the makeup station, and Yuta goes to the back to change out of his tight leather pants.

After a second, Yuta asks, “Yong, can you get my towel from the other room?”

Taeyong makes a sound of fond exasperation. “Yeah, just a second.”

He quickly pulls off the uncomfortable suspenders- his shoulders are going to get leather rashes, and darts out of the room, only to be slammed face first against the wall.

Taeyong’s heart races- _what the fuck-_

“What a show you put on, Taeyong.”

Taeyong suppresses a shiver as he feels the words rumble from behind. Heat radiates from the man’s grip on his wrist, but he’s not weak. With a strong shove, he throws his weight backwards and regains his footing, then quickly turns to glare at the man in question.

“I thought that when you said you were subbing for Ten, you meant at the dance studio, not here.” Jaehyun growls, voice with an edge of impatience.

Taeyong scoffs and folds his arms. “Jealous?”

“Only because of the no-touching rules around here. Otherwise I would’ve shown everyone who you belonged to.” Jaehyun smirks, sharp brown eyes piercing into Taeyong’s grey lenses. He takes a step forward.

Taeyong matches his step, and leans in. Their faces are mere inches apart now, and he smirks at Jaehyun. “Green is a wonderful colour on your eyes, Jae. Wear it more often.”

Without giving the man a chance to reply, he turns heels and heads for the other dressing room. A hand shoots out and grips onto his shoulder, rooting him in place.

“Don’t try me, babe. I’ll see you by the back doors.” Jaehyun’s breath comes out in a whispered warning against Taeyong’s neck. In a second, the heat of his grip is gone, and Taeyong looks over his shoulder to see Jaehyun’s black-clad figure disappear behind the “Employees Only” door. He rolls his eyes and goes to fetch the towel.

•••

In the first dressing room, Yuta rolls his eyes as he scrolls through his phone. “Really, role play?” He mutters to himself. “Yongie you kinky bastard.”


	2. playground scuffle

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Pairing: Jaeyong  
> Rating: General  
> AN: Some friendships come in pink, pale blue, and white.

“Here.”

Taeyong looks up to see a young boy with warm brown eyes and auburn hair holding onto a scruff of something in his extended hand and scrunches his nose with distaste. The boy looks no older than Taeyong himself, which is a grand total of six years. But then again, Taeyong’s always been on the small side, so maybe the boy is younger.

The boy narrows his eyes and repeats more insistently, “Here, it’s yours.”

His insistency is starting to grate on Taeyong’s nerves, and his frown turns into a glare. “I don’t want it.”

“You don’t even know what it is!” The boy says hotly, a blush forming across his nose and ears.

“Then open your hands.” Taeyong sneers.

But the boy misreads his tone (‘Definitely on the slow side.’ Taeyong thinks to himself) and grins widely. It’s to the point where Taeyong notices that he has really round cheeks, and really deep dimples.

“If I open my hands, you’ll have you take it. Okay?”

Not seeing another way out, and just wanting some peace and quiet, Taeyong decides to play along. He extends his hands hesitantly, eyes fearful, waiting to catch the centipede or beetle that’ll surely be in the boy’s hands. But what ends up dropping onto his palm is a mess of pink, light blue and white threads.

He looks at the rat’s nest for a long, confused moment, then back at the boy.

“What _is_ this? Ew I don’t want it take it back!” And without warning, Taeyong tries to throw the pile of threads back at the dimple boy, who smiles widely again despite having his present rejected.

“No! You’re keeping it now!” He screams loudly, giggling and leaping towards Taeyong to hold his hands together.

“No I’m not! Get this thing way from me before I throw it out!” Taeyong threatens, also screaming. He’s never raised his voice like this before, and it cracks mid-way. If his mother caught him, he’d be scolded for sure.

In a split second, Taeyong finds himself falling backwards onto the wood chip padding of the playground, and the vertigo pierces wetness in the corner of his eyes.

“Ow… Ow! Get off of me!” He pushes and scrambles, trying to get the other boy off of him, but the boy holds his hands closed tightly between them, unwilling to let go.

“I w-won’t!” The boy says, then almost gets the air knocked out of him when Taeyong attempts to shove his knees between then to kick the other boy off. “Stop it!”

Taeyong pauses for all of two seconds. “You’re on top of me and I can’t breathe and why aren’t any adults coming!”

“Haven’t you ever seen a friendship bracelet before!“

Taeyong stills, then frowns at the other boy on him. What is he talking about?

By then, both boys have shallow scratches on their elbows and knees, but instead of bursting to tears, they slowly sit up and across from each other. Finally, the other boy lets go, and Taeyong feels the blood rushing to his hands again. The boy has really strong grip…

“A friendship bracelet. I made it for you.” The boy grunts out, looking heartbroken at the scruff of thread in Taeyong’s hand.

Slowly, Taeyong opens his palms and sees that, well, it’s… poorly made, but there _is_ some semblance of a friendship bracelet in the mess of threads…

“I kept seeing you all alone when I came here, so I thought you’d like it, and we could be friends.” The boy mumbles under his breath. His bottom lip quivers, and Taeyong looks up to see the warm brown eyes brimming with tears. Oh geez.

“No- oh no don’t cry! What are you crying for!”A rush of guilt floods into Taeyong’s veins as he half shouts, half cries as well.

“You don’t want it… but I made it for you…” A tear slips.

Clutching onto the bracelet in his small hand, Taeyong pushes it towards his chest and yelps, “Here, I’ll take it. I’ll take it! So be quiet. Stop crying.”

Jaehyun gazes at the sad mop of threads and mumbles, “But you’re not wearing it.”

At this point, Taeyong’s at his wit’s end. Anything to keep the boy from crying is worth doing. He hastily wraps two threads together in a crappy knot and presents his wrist like saying, _Look, I’ve done the thing, now can you stop crying?_

But the boy frowns and eyes at the bracelet like Taeyong has done a terrible job of tying it (which he did, but no more so than the job of putting said bracelet together), and unties and reties it. Taeyong watches silently and stops himself from fiddling from being so close to such a snotty and teary boy.

The strings are loose enough to be comfortable, and tight enough to stay on. The first knot is a dead knot. The second knot is also a dead knot.

… wait.

“Did you just tie two dead knots together?” Taeyong asks, staring dumbly at the crappy pink and light blue and white bracelet on his wrist, then up at the grinning boy. How did his mood change so quickly-

“So it’ll stay on. My mom taught me that.” The boy smirks.

There are no dimples now.

Taeyong blinks and looks down at the bracelet again. Immediately, he shoves two fingers under the thread and pulls and pulls with all his strength, but it doesn’t give. The threads start leaving red imprints on his tender skin, so he stops.

“You can’t take it off! We’re friends now!” The boy grins with his entire face again, all dimples. His arms stretch above to behind his back and he walks closer to Taeyong like he’s caught his prey.

Taeyong certainly feels like one.

“Okay, so, so! My name is Jaehyun and I’m five years old and I like pizza and donuts and-"

Wasting no time, Taeyong backs out of the playground and makes a beeline for his bike, which is propped up by the fence.

“…This is dumb. I’m going home and cutting this off.” He mutters under his breath, cradling his hand like it's injured from the threads.

But with his back facing the boy, he doesn’t see the other running towards him at full speed, throwing his weight onto the smaller Taeyong. They go tumbling face-first into the pile of sand in the kiddie sand box.

A beat.

Taeyong struggles to get up again. Only this time, the other boy- Jaehyun, jumps to his feet first, sputtering at the sand he’s eaten. Taeyong, having cleaned up with a few shakes of his head and arms and legs, is sitting in the middle of the pit and watching Jaehuyn freak out for a solid minute.

_How can anyone be so dumb?_

“Dude. Just. Stop moving for a second.” Taeyong suggests quietly.

“I can’t hear you there’s sand in my mmmf- ear- I think I’m going deaf-“

“I SAID, JUST STOP MOVING FOR A SECOND.” Taeyong shouts at the top of his lungs. He also stands to his feet and pulls at Jaehyun’s shoulders, stopping his frantic movements.

Jaehyun freezes, eyes scrunched up like he’s eaten lime or something. Taeyong rolls his eyes and blows gently. The first time he blows, Jaehyun flinches back and screeches again, but Taeyong’s hands are strong on Jaehyun’s shoulders so the other can’t get away. Eventually, Jaehyun calms down and waits for Taeyong to finish.

Most of the sand falls off Jaehyun’s face, and the rest Taeyong brushes off with his thumb. He checks both ears to make sure nothing got into them, and pads them off with care as well.

From this distance, he is forced to examine Jaehyun’s face much more closely. It's then that he notices this: when Jaehyun isn’t being loud and annoying, he actually looks kind of friendly, kind of cute. But Taeyong remembers the stupid bracelet on his wrist, and sighs to himself.

Eventually, after he’s cleaned the younger boy up, Taeyong turns to face Jaehyun again and punches him in the lungs.

“Don’t even say you didn’t deserve that.” He growls.

Without waiting for Jaehyun, he yanks his bike from the fence and rides off.

“H-hey! I’ll see you tomorrow! You better be wearing the bracelet!!”

•••

Threads of pink, pale blue and white flutter in the afternoon wind. Half-way home, Taeyong’s cheeks finally break into a scrunched up grin. Then he chuckles to himself, which breaks out into full on laughter as he paddles onwards.

When his mom asks, he’ll just say he won a playground scuffle.


	3. runaway

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Pairing: Johnyong  
> Rating: Teen+  
> AN: A prompt I received on [tw](https://twitter.com/pnkpxls) by @onehiddentrack: JohnYong happening where one being a chauffeur for someone to a wedding, and the other is the bridegroom of that wedding who wants to run away from the big event of his life?

“Sir, you really don’t look so good.”

Taeyong clutches his stomach and feeling the coffee he downed this morning repeating on him. He shoots an unappreciative glare at the back of his chauffeur and grits out, “While I really appreciate your concern, this is literally neither the right time or place to talk about this.”

The tall man with a kind smile and light hazel eyes peers through the rear view mirror and meets his gaze. “I’m just saying, it’s your big day. You might want to take a break in the bathroom  _ before you go and say your vows _ . There are less important events for accidents to happen, a wedding ain’t it.”

Taeyong tries to take deep breaths and control his heart, or his bowels, neither of which are being very nice right now.

“Sir, I insist-”

“Okay, oh God, fuck. Please stop at the nearest coffee shop.”

The black SUV pulls into the driveway of the coffee shop, but instead of making a beeline to the washroom like the driver expects, Taeyong tumbles onto the curb, taking deep breaths while pressing a shaky palm on his chest above his heart, his other arm wrapped around his stomach.

The driver takes one look at him before he turns off the ignition and goes into the coffee shop. Taeyong barely notices. He doesn’t even care that he’s creasing his stiff suit and pressed shirt, leaving little scratch marks on his shined thrice to heaven black shoes. His heart is wrecking havoc in his chest, telling him that no, this is not right.

This marriage is not bred out of love (not the way Taeyong heavily prefers to), but out of mutual, economic benefits. She’s a pharmaceutical giant’s precious granddaughter, and he is the up and coming Dean of Gangnam Children’s Hospital. Anyone with half a brain cell can see through this ruse. He’s not bound by his family honour, but the hospital’s reputation may take a hit if he rejected.

The sound of swirling ice has Taeyong’s attention, and he looks up to see his driver bending over, a cup of iced water in his hand. “Take sips, it’ll help,” the man says.

Taeyong does as told, holding onto the cup with his hands and taking little sips, while alternating his breathing. His heart calms after a few beats.

“It’s not my business, but if this is affecting you so negatively, maybe you shouldn’t complete the ceremony.”

Taeyong laughs bitterly. “It’s not that simple.”

The driver narrows his eyes, and settles beside Taeyong with an inch of space between them. He folds his legs under him and wraps his arms around them, a pensive expression on his face. “Of course it’s not. But you’re making a decision that looks to be tearing you apart. It’s not something you can live with right now, let alone ten, twenty years down the road. Put your foot down now, it’ll make life easier later.”

The driver gives Taeyong another moment, then pats his shoulder comfortingly before going back into his car. “Let’s go.”

Maybe that’s the voice he needed the most. Not someone to tell him what to do, or what not to do, but urge him to do what he thinks is right.

The ordeal comes and goes with as much fanfare and destruction as Taeyong expects. The bride, a beautiful, powerful, and insanely vindictive woman threw a fit worthy of her grandfather’s title as the pharmaceutical mogul. The press went bonkers over the news. Taeyong stood ramrod straight in front of the crowd, explaining that he cannot go on with a union that signs both heart (his hospital) and soul (his personal life) away. His hands shake with nervousness as he meets the eyes of investors, in laws-to-be, and the press. But when he catches the round, soft hazel eyes of his driver, he remembers that he’s doing this for himself, and his heart pounds less aggressively in his ribcage.

Once he steps off the podium (and a stray wine glass threatened missed him by a mile, because the poor bride had shitty aim) his legs give out and he almost falls, but the driver is there to catch him before he hits the ground.

“You okay?”

“Yeah, I’m- thanks.”

“Let’s get you home.”

“Thank you… By the way, I never caught your name.”

“It’s Johnny.”

“Johnny, I… I owe you coffee.”

They quickly slide into the car and pull out of the parking lot. The church behind them looks less and less menacing and Taeyong ducks in his seat to avoid the structure altogether. Once they’re out in the clear, Johnny huffs, a sly smile pulling at his lips.

“Coffee? For the price of happiness and freedom for the rest of your life? I’m pretty sure you owe me more than that.”

Despite all that’s happened, Taeyong can’t help the indignance that roars up within him. “Are you really weaseling more compensation from me right now? Fine. Ten coffees.”

Johnny laughs, low and genuine. “Make that a date.”

It’s not until Taeyong’s dropped off in front of his home did he register what Johnny had said.

In the ride-share app, Johnny sends over a winky face, his preferred coffee shop address, and a time and date.

Taeyong blushes at the shamelessness of the man, but the smile that pulls at the corner of his lips is no less genuine. There will be tough days ahead, but he now has coffee dates to look forward to.


	4. broom closet

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Pairing: Jaeyong  
> Rating: Teen+  
> AN: A prompt I received on [tw](https://twitter.com/pnkpxls) by @Crimsonlotus_: Jaeyong, friends to lovers. Their friends dared them to kiss and they didn't know what to do but ended do it anyway and realizing that they in fact like each other.

Jaehyun freezes when the bottle he spins lands on Taeyong. He glances over for a split second, gauging his reaction, but the other boy has his eyes downwards, ears red-tipped and lips pulled into a tight line. In displeasure, Jaehyun guesses, feeling a pang in his chest. He nearly chokes on his water as his band mates shove him to the direction of the practice room broom closet.

He slowly stands to his feet as Taeyong does the same, their eyes meeting briefly. He notes a mix of hesitation, shyness, a strange sense of urgency in Taeyong’s eyes and feels he echoes a similar sentiment.

“Let’s just get it over with.” Taeyong says, tilting his head towards the closet.

Jaehyun tries not to falter as he nods. “Yeah, I was thinking that too.”

Without another word of protest, they climb into the broom closet, and a smirking Yuta closes the door behind them.

In the darkness, Jaehyun hears Taeyong feel his way around the closet, bumping into a few things along the way. Something hits his forehead and he groans, clutching his forehead. He fumbles a bit, feeling the handle of a mop somewhere to his right, and blindly tucks it behind him. “Hyung, stop moving. Things are falling on me!”

Taeyong grumbles a quiet complaint, but the shuffling sounds he makes lessens like he’s finally settled down. “It’s seven minutes, I’m trying to get comfortable.”

Jaehyun’s about to tease him, but he remembers how Taeyong hurt his back during dance practice and grows quiet. Being crammed inside a small space is probably not fun as fun for him right now. And so they settle down, each in their own thoughts as they wait the seven minutes out. Jaehyun catches a whiff of lavender febreeze and chuckles to himself, knowing that it’s not the cleaning products that smell like that, but Taeyong.

“Do you think Johnny and Hansol actually made out?”

He hears Taeyong shift, a barely noticeable sound of cotton on skin, followed by a soft sigh. “Probably. They were trying to play it off, but Johnny had this look on his face when he came back out.” Taeyong replies quietly.

Jaehyun lets out a bark of laughter, too loud for such small enclosures. “Hansol and Yuta definitely made out though, right?”

Taeyong snorts, and Jaehyun can't help but picture his face. His lip is probably curled to a side, eyes narrowing slightly. “Making out was probably the first minute.”

Jaehyun snickers too. Hansol might seem like he has the emotional capacity of a brick, but he and Yuta have gotten so loud that their manager even gave them a warning.

...

Six minutes to go.

Jaehyun clears his throat, trying to fill the silences between them. “Are you seriously hurt anywhere? I mean, during practice.”

His eyes strain to catch Tarying's expression in the dark, but he sees nothing. Then he hears: “No, just the same pain in the neck and lower back.”

“Did you use the muscle ache patch?”

There's a shift in tone, and Taeyong's voice sounds a little sarcastic. “Duh.”

It is a long night of dance practice before they film Bassbot as SM Rookies when Yuta gets the brilliant idea of playing Seven Minutes of Heaven. It helps keep their minds off the nervousness, he explains, and Johnny and Ten eagerly agrees to it. Taeyong is about to protest, but his complaint is drowned out when everyone reaches for their water bottles and circles around the resting area. As the game proceeds, neither Ten nor Johnny landed on each other, but Johnny ended up with Hansol, and Hansol ended up with Yuta. Then it was Jaehyun's turn.

Jaehyun plays with his fingers, feeling bored. Then an idea comes into his head and he shuffles towards Taeyong.

“So… wanna make out?”

A silence falls on them.

Just as Jaehyun opens his mouth to call it off, Taeyong quietly asks, “Why?”

Jaehyun blinks, though it’s not like either of them can see. “Uh, why not?” As the words leave his mouth, he mentally smacks himself. He probably sounds like an idiot now.

“Because we don't kiss?” Comes the incredulous answer.

“Yeah, but neither did Johnny and Hansol.”

There’s a pause, like Taeyong is silently questioning Jaehyun’s intelligence. Finally he sighs loudly and tilts back, hitting the side of the closet with a soft rumble. “Okay, then kiss either of them.”

Jaehyun blinks owlishly. “How does that make sense, they're not even here right now.”

Taeyong sneers. “Too bad. Guess you’ll have to make sure the next time you spin it lands on either of them, or vice versa.”

Jaehyun frowns at the tone. “It’s not like that. I just want to know what it’s like to like, y’know, go full out with the game.”

He hears Taeyong sigh explosively, and grins to himself. It’s working.

“Full out would require that we lip lock the second we’re in.”

Jaehyun grins. “Then we’re already wasting time, aren’t we?”

Taeyong is making a face, “Yes but-”

“Okay I’m leaning close now-”

“Oi-”

“Ow!-”  
“Watch it! That’s my eye.”

“Okay, stand straight. Wait, what are you doing? That’s my hand.”

“And that’s my neck. Just hold on here so I know where to aim.”

“Okay um, hold on-”

“Just shut up and let me-”

And the second time Jaehyun leans down a little, he feels soft lips pressed against the corner of his mouth, and then promptly forgets to breathe. Just for a second.

“You missed,” he whispered, tilting his head slightly so their lips slot together at a better angle.

“Maybe _you_ missed,” Taeyong growls against his lips.

Jaehyun smirks at the challenging tone and presses a little more insistently on the lips against his. Jaehyun is a little taller than Taeyong, and with his hyung leaning against the side of the closet, the angle gives him the advantage to be on top. His tongue darts out to taste the seam of Taeyong’s lips, who opens his mouth a moment later, and Jaehyun dips in for a taste.

Taeyong’s tongue brushes against his hesitantly, then growing confident with each second as they push and pull, taste and lick and move insistently against each other. Taeyong’s arms around Jaehyun’s shoulders tug him a little closer, leveling the playing ground as a hand cards through Jaehyun’s thick locks. Jaehyun will not admit that it felt good enough he moaned around the mouth on his.

In return, Jaehyun’s grip on Taeyong’s chin tightens as he draws even closer, pulling the slighter body against him because it felt so fucking good.

“Alright kids, I’m giving you five seconds to be decent again. Five! Four-”

They pull apart with a jump. Jaehyun’s eyes widen as he touches his lips with the back of his hand. Holy shit that was-

“Three! Two!”

“For the love of god don’t finish that sentence, Yuta is right there.” Taeyong all but grounds out in a soft, threatening hiss. Jaehyun didn’t realize he was speaking his thoughts.

“One!”

The door opens without another second, and Yuta grins at their dishevelled appearances.

Taeyong glares at his best friend. “Not a word, Nakamoto.”

Yuta gestures zipping his lips up and throwing away the key, but his shit-eating grin makes Taeyong glare furiously at him anyway.

As for Jaehyun, well, he’s got another problem to deal with. With a quick snap of decision, he roughly shoves Yuta back, yanks Taeyong into his arms and closes the door behind them again.

“OI!”  
“Jae-”

And they’re kissing again. Taeyong’s protest is lost somewhere as he melts into Jaehyun’s touch, who seems like he can’t get enough of the lips, touch, and scent from the boy before him.

When they come out a few (maybe more) minutes later, the others have already left, and there’s a 10,000 ₩ stuck with a sticky note on the mirror.

“It’s getting late. Manager-hyung said to take the taxi home.”

Jaehyun meets Taeyong’s eyes, and the way they sparkle in a soft but intense kind of way makes his heart skip a beat.

“Better not regret this,” Taeyong smirks, striding towards the door.

Jaehyun breaks into a smile as well. “Only if it’s the last time I get to do that.”

“Ah, then here comes the regrets.”

Jaehyun pounces on him from the back, arms circling around his middle. “Quoting Epik High? How happy are you?”

“Quoting genius lyricists. And,” He presses a kiss on the arm in front of him, “quite happy.”

Jaehyun laughs quietly beside his ear. “Then there better be repeats.” He lets go, falling into stride with Taeyong as their fingers link.

He grins. “Hm, maybe.”


	5. rilakkuma

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Pairing: Jaeyong  
> Rating: Teen+  
> AN: Inspired by [this](https://twitter.com/onehiddentrack/status/1100628946557620225).

It was a gift Taeyong’s father won him during a summer carnival one year. It was as big as him, and the first time he laid eyes on it he knew he couldn’t leave without taking it home. Its eyes were big round buttons, and ears soft and plush like the rest of its body. So he did one thing he never thought he’d do at the age of 6, he whined and begged his father to win the toy for him.

It was a shooting game, and by luck, his father was some kind of arms specialist when he served at the army. He honed his skills so much that he had too many bullseye targets under his belt before he became a civilian again. A skill he honed and made into something, like winning stuffed animals for his children.

So Taeyong brought the gigantic teddy bear home with him that evening, hugging the bear close and grinning like the champion he felt he was.

His mother patted his father’s back a job well done, and his sister sneered at his immaturity, but quietly squeezed the Bulbasaur toy from her backpack to hold in her arms as they walk to the train station.

When they got home, Taeyong quickly tossed it in the wash, dried it over the morning, and went to sleep with it the next night (because carnival booth sanitation is poor at best, and Taeyong wasn’t about to get sick from the germs trapped inside the docile looking bear).

It was as cuddly as he imagined, and it smells like laundry detergent, his favourite smell.

The first thing he uttered to it was, “Good night, Mr. Bear.”

The following morning was a Saturday, it meant piano classes in the morning, and swimming classes in the afternoon. But there was a slot of time in the middle when Taeyong would go home, have lunch, change into his speedos before heading out again. And in that precious time, he propped Mr. Bear up to sit on his chair while he sat on his sister’s.

Meanwhile, his sister was pulling on her shoes, little oxfords against swamp-sized puddles with how hard it was raining outside.

He leaned close to Mr. Bear and whispered, “She’s definitely going on a date,” and, just as inconspicuously, settled back into his- no, his sister’s chair.

She shot a suspicious look in his direction as he scooped a spoonful of kimchi fried rice in his mouth, chewing as innocently as he could, then she strode out the door. His mother settled a small serving of potato pancake in front of him before turning and sighing at the door.

“Those are going to get ruined in two seconds. What was she thinking?” She muttered.

Without waiting for a response, she turned her attention to the dishes in the sink. Taeyong finished the rest of his food in silence, but he shared a secretive smile with Mr. Bear.

When he finished eating, he cleaned his own dishes before pulling the bear into his arms, carefully carrying his best friend back into bed, before he went out again for swimming.

And so the tradition was born, where Taeyong would bring Mr. Bear with him around his home (except for the bathroom); they quickly became inseparable.

Weeks later, Taeyong came back to his room with uncharacteristic sluggish energy, dragging his feet on the ground and plopping his bag on the ground. He didn’t even bother to empty his bag, he fell face-first on his bed and let out a sound between a frustrated squeak and a sigh. Mr. Bear shifts a little as he flips to his back, staring at the ceiling with unblinking eyes as tears streamed down his face.

There was a long moment of very, very quiet hiccups.

After a few more minutes, he wiped his eyes and cheeks into his bed covers, and turned to flash a wobbly smile at Mr. Bear. “School is tough for people who aren’t good at studying, aren’t they?”

That evening, he presented his report card to his parents, feeling the embarrassment and shame coursing through his veins sand across his cheeks as one blue-coloured “B” presented itself beside the subject “Mathematics”.

Both of his parents tried to hide their reaction with sounds of encouragement, but Taeyong knew they were disappointed in him. He ran into his room, locked his door, and bawled his eyes out until he fell asleep. In his arms, in comfort, was Mr. Bear.

Weeks later, still, he hobbled into his room and collapsed onto his bed. His mother followed him in moments later with a first-aid kit and rubbing alcohol.

“I told you to be careful of the slippery field, it rained last night!” She scolded, unscrewing the lid of the bottle and peeling out a piece of cotton swab. Taeyong said nothing, but he hugged Mr. Bear close as he felt the stinging on his knee. His eyes watered, but he didn’t make a sound.

More cotton swabs and bandages later, his mother packed the first aid kit up and left him to his mopey devices, which he did for maybe two seconds.

“I’m gonna show those boys I can win against them! Yu and I may only be two people, but we’re the best!”

A few days later, he returned with more cuts and bruises on his elbows and shins, but the winning grin he wore spoke volumes of his accomplishment. He pulled Mr Bear’s arms around him and settled in his bed while his mother came in again, sighing for the hundredth time, with the trusty first aid kit.

“We won. We won so fair and square even the blind saw our goal.” He puffed out his chest, pumping his fists in the air.

“Yongie, stop moving around and let me treat you,” his mother warned, slapping his leg lightly so she could at least disinfect the smaller cuts.

Taeyong pulled the stuffed bear’s arms tighter around him and sank into comfort, dreaming of goals and the sweet taste of victory.

Months passed with the blink of round, black, button eyes. Taeyong wore a multitude of emotions when he came home. It would be a different story every day- sometimes he’d complain about not doing well in the spelling test, sometimes a classmate did something mildly (or alarmingly) disgusting. But he would always sit beside his favourite Bear, spell out his day as he ate his afternoon snack, before getting ushered to his evening math tutoring session.

One day, he came back home with a piece of paper in hand, a wide grin on his face as he carefully places the bouquet and diploma on his desk.

Graduation. And not just any graduation, high school graduation.

He was officially done with high school. What a day.

He took a few pictures on his phone, filled a vase with water and sunk the flowers in them, and brought the diploma with him to be stored away. The big button eyes peered down from above the dresser, where Mr. Bear was kept.

 

Two years later, his own conscription came and went, and he was a free man again. He quickly applied to all of the universities he could, and waited with bated breath for results.

A few came with words of congratulations, but the one he waited for came much later: KAIST. He’d be moving all the way down to Daejeon, but the education and the job prospects would make the rest of his life a smooth sailing comfort, or so he hoped. With the letter of acceptance came a flurry of cleaning, his room was to be repurposed into a guest room. He diligently packed his clothes away, putting them into containers to be donated to families in need. His books were also recycled or donated to relevant foundations. Finally, he looked at the big, black button eyes of his bear, smiled a little wryly, and carefully cleaned and stored it in his room, sitting on the edge of his bed, waiting for him to come back one more time.

The first week of university was hellish. Everything was different and new, nothing was as he expected, not in the same way. He made quick friends with a tall foreigner student, Johnny, and his considerably shorter friend, Ten.

“Aerospace.”

“Mechatronics.”

“Hacking.”

Their eyes turned to Taeyong, who grins wolfishly and snickers. “Kidding, I’m in mechatronics too.”

And so Taeyong and Ten became quick friends, with a side of Johnny, the foreigner who made friends with everyone, literally everyone. His friendly demeanour attracted attention from all corners of the room, as did his dad jokes and pun-y charm. Ten groans and covers his ears, and Taeyong bore it with a pained smile while the two quickened their footsteps before they’re looped into another one of Johnny’s jokes.

In their hurry, Taeyong bumps into another person, one wearing… a bear mascot.

“Sorry! Are you okay?” Comes the muffled voice.

“Uh… yeah, I think I am,” he manages to say.

“Maybe watch where you’re going and don’t run in hallways, yeah?” Ten snipes back, wrapping an arm around Taeyong’s middle.

“I’m sorry!” The man squeaks, then he turns tail and runs out of sight.

They blink at his retrieving back.

“Is our school mascot Rilakkuma?” Taeyong asks in wonder.

“I’m pretty sure it’s not, also because it would cause all kinds of copyright issues.”

They quickly look it up. It, indeed, was not Rilakkuma, but a blue alien with a flat football-shaped head. It was… cute?

“It’s… cute?” Ten echoes his inner thoughts.

Taeyong shrugs and keeps walking, pulling Ten along as he does. They have a class to go to.

 

It isn’t until two days later when Taeyong settles on a bench during lunch hours that Rilakkuma taps on his shoulder to get his attention, which was kind of ridiculous, to be honest. Does the man not have a face? Ten would be making snide comments again, but he’s slept through his alarm after a long night of drinking and partying.

Rilakkuma starts with a deep ninety degree bow. “Hey, hope I’m not intruding. I just want to apologize for bumping into you the other day.”

Startled, Taeyong can only say, “It’s fine, don’t worry about it.”

“I’ll look where I’m going next time,” the muffled voice says.

Taeyong snorts, setting his triangular gimbap down. “It’s kind of hard when you’re wearing this whole garb. Why do you wear that?”

“Um, it’s a mascot.”

Taeyong frowns. “This isn’t the school mascot.”

“It’s… a mascot for something else.” Comes the ambiguous reply.

Taeyong scoffs. “Well, it’s lunch time, shouldn’t you get a break too?”

Rilakkuma shifts his weight and twists about, like he’s embarrassed. It’s kind of cute, in a childish way. “Ah… I suppose.”

Taeyong scoots over on his bench, making space for the bear. “Then take it off. You need your rest too.”

Rilakkuma looks at the space Taeyong made, then back at him. “You… want me to sit with you?”

Taeyong rolls his eyes. “Sure, I’ll even share my lunch since I’m feeling so charitable,” he says sarcastically.

After a moment of pause, Rilakkuma sits down beside Taeyong, who cannot imagine his day getting any weirder. This mascot needs a sarcasm detector. He also needs to take off his mask, it’s becoming a little unnerving staring at big button eyes. At least he didn’t take up Taeyong’s offer of food. Taeyong doesn’t actually want to share his lunch.

“So, are you a student or something?”

“Double majoring architecture and urban space planning.”

Taeyong whistles. “You’re a creative.”

Rilakkuma scratches the back of its head. “Not in the traditional sense of the word, but yeah, I guess you could say that.”

“So that still doesn’t answer the question, what are you doing in a Rilakkuma mascot? And more importantly, why am I still talking to its face?”

Rilakkuma stills, turning to look at Taeyong slowly. He can almost feel the gaze from the mesh of the mouth, and rolls his eyes at the dramatics.

“You don’t like this?” Rilakkuma asks.

Taeyong looks away. “It’s not that I don’t, it’s weird, that’s all.”

“Weird, how?”

“I don’t know, it’s like I’m talking to a stuffed toy.”

“What’s wrong with that?”

Taeyong makes a small mocking gesture around him. “Most university students don’t find themselves talking to stuffed toys.”

Rilakkuma crosses his arms. “Doesn’t mean there’s anything wrong with it.”

“Plus, your voice isn’t really suited for such a cute character. I would’ve expected something… cuter.”

“Oh.”

Then, with a pause of hesitation, Rilakkuma reaches behind his head and unsticks the velcro attaching the body to the head. Then, Taeyong doesn’t know what to think anymore.

He expected a lanky dude with a weird affinity for stuffed toys. He expected a sleazy dude who wants to meet girls with a cuter appearance. He didn’t expect a man with caramel hair, fair skin, and deep brown eyes to reveal before him. To say he was surprised was an understatement.

“What? Is my hair messed up again?” The man asks, trying to fix his annoyingly perfect hair. He’s sweating so much, why does he look good sweating this much?

“It’s a lost cause, don’t bother.” Taeyong scowls, quickly turning back to his food to hide his growing blush. “I looked at those eyes for so long I didn’t realize there was actually a human inside.”

The man laughs, and Taeyong notes with a hint of jealousy: dimples.

“You’re weird.”

Taeyong sneers. “Says the man who wears mascots for no good reason.”

The man scrunches his nose in displeasure. “‘The man’? I have a name, you know. It’s Jaehyun.”

Taeyong shakes his head, quickly finishing the rest of his gimbap and making his swift escape. “Uh huh, Bear-man. Man-bear. Whatever you say.”

Jaehyun flounders for a second, reaching for his hand to pull the last bite out of his mouth, only he was too late. “Hey- you were supposed to share that!”

Taeyong grins through his food. “Too late, bear-man.”

Jaehyun pulls a disgusted face. “Do you have no manners? And you promised! I’m hungry.”

“That’s not my problem. You just came here to apologize, Job Well Done. Go take the rest of your break and get back to work, Rilakkuma.” Taeyong jumps to his feet, swinging his bag across his back and waves a hasty goodbye.

“It’s Jaehyun!” Comes the shout from behind.

Taeyong chuckles to himself, and races to his next class.

 

In the next few weeks, Taeyong keeps bumping into Jaehyun. The university is by no means small, and he and Jaehyun are taking entirely different classes. But he could never miss the big round head of Rilakkuma as it looms in the hallway. So one day, curiosity gets the better of him, and he taps Rilakkuma on the shoulder.

“Hey.”

Rilakkuma- no, Jaehyun turns and sees him, and he acts like he’s surprised. “It’s you!”

Taeyong snorts, the corners of his mouth quirking to a smile. “Who else could it be, dumbass.”

Rilakkuma covers his heart like he’s hurt. “I’m not a dumbass.”

Okay, that was kind of funny. Taeyong bites through his smile. “Right, sorry. So anyway, why are you wearing the mascot? What team are you cheering for?”

Rilakkuma flusters for a bit. “Um… Team Taeyong!”

Taeyong blinks. “... that’s… me?”

“It’s you, right?”

“Yeah, I mean. Yes, of course that’s me. How do you even know my name?”

“Uh, I overheard your friend call you that… the one time I bumped into you.”

Taeyong frowns, he remembers it vaguely, but he doesn’t recall Ten saying his name.

“Oh, okay. So you’re cheering for me?”

“I guess, I’m a student cheerleader. I’m supposed to cheer people up! You smiled at me before. I saw it!”

Caught red-handed, Taeyong clears his throat and looks away. “Don’t you have normal student things to do, like studying, studying, and-”

“Don’t say studying, that’s not all that students do.” Rilakkuma points an accusing finger.

Taeyong blushes, looking away. “I was going to say partying.”

“Oh. I do study, and I do go to those.”

“Parties?”

“Yeah.”

“In… this?” Taeyong gives the costume a suspicious onceover.

“Of course.”

“You gotta be shitting me.”

“Yeah, I am.”

Taeyong’s brain halts to a stop. “Wow. What the hell.”

Jaehyun clutches onto his stomach, doubling over with laughter at Taeyong’s expression. It looks like Taeyong’s told a comedic gold and Rilakkuma’s losing his mind over it. It’s an association Taeyong can do without.

“I would’ve remembered seeing you if you did.”

“There are many campus parties around. What makes you think we go to the same ones?”

“Taeyong! BABY YONGIE!”

They both turn their heads to see an excited Ten bounce towards them, one with feign amusement, the other with a sense of dread. Hip-shoving a six foot something Rilakkuma mascot aside, Ten gains up on an exasperated Taeyong.

“What part of NOT leaving me to rot in my own drunken stupor did you not understand?” Ten grinds out, eyes glaring daggers at Taeyong’s highly unamused expression. It’s almost like he deals with this everyday. Maybe he has. “I can’t skip anymore of Mr. Wu’s classes, you know this!”

“It’s not my responsibility to forklift you off your bed and bring you to class either, Mr. Party Till 5 AM.”

“Bars need to be closed earlier.”

“Or maybe you need to exercise moderation, idiot.” Taeyong teases fondly, pressing a palm on Ten’s nape. It’s a practiced motion now, they’re pretty close with each other.

Rilakkuma takes a step back. “I… should go to class. See you guys later.” He waves, then quickly strides away. A student stops him in the middle for a high five, but he doesn’t see it.

“Thanks for cheering me on, Rila- I mean, Jaehyun!” Taeyong calls back, a fond grin pulling at his lips.

“Getting comfy there.” Ten says, narrowing his eyes suspiciously.

“Don’t even. It’s not like that.”

“You don’t come to the parties Johnny and I throw. You hardly socialize unless you have to. What is this between you and bear-man?”

Taeyong laughs. “It’s Rilakkuma, and his name is Jaehyun.”

“Rikkaluma? Rilakkuma? Whatever. And stop avoiding the question.”

“What question?”

“When are you going to join our parties? You gotta come. I promise not to drag you to all the rounds, you can stop after the third.”

“Ten, I don’t drink.”

“We’ve been saying this forever. You don’t need to drink. Just come hang out, have fun.”

“But Ten-”

“C’mon, you have four years of university, you gotta give it a shot.”

 

And that is how Taeyong finds himself sitting across Jaehyun in a fried chicken and beer restaurant, bustling, lively, and making all sorts of money from the poor students who are too tired, overworked, and horny to say no to fried chicken and beer. It somehow makes sense.

“Wow, we actually do go to the same parties,” Jaehyun muses with a small, teasing grin.

“How did you even meet him, Johnny?” Taeyong asks, shooting an accusing glare in Johnny’s direction.

Johnny shrugs. “I don’t remember. Friend of a friend, like most of these people are?”

Jaehyun nods vaguely. “Friend of a friend.”

“Eyy.”

They fist bump. Taeyong’s starting to think it’s some kind of American culture that he’s not privy to, nor does he care enough to learn about.

Ten finishes building a somaek train, and everyone pounds onto the table really quickly to get the shot glasses to tip and fall into the beer. Again, another one of Korea’s drinking games that Taeyong’s not privy to, but is becoming increasingly wary of.

Ten hands him his glass. “That’s for you.”

“Ten, I don’t drink.”

“Oh come on! It’s just one drink!”

Jaehyun sticks his hand out between their faces, then smiles a little shyly. “I can take it for you.”

Doyoung gasps, and Jungwoo catches him before he falls at hits his face. Apparently he slipped on beer on the ground. The table laughs about it, but Taeyong turns to Jaehyun who’s reaching over for his glass. Normally, Taeyong wouldn’t care about this, but for some reason, he feels like he needs to save his dignity. He pulls it away from the pale hand.

“I don’t need you.”

Jaehyun raises an eyebrow. “You also don’t drink. C’mon, this isn’t a competition. I’ve got a high tolerance.”

Before Jaehyun even finishes his sentence, Taeyong has already tipped the glass into his mouth, downing its contents in one long gulp. He slams the pint onto the table and glares at Jaehyun, who frowns and raises his hands in mock surrender.

“I wasn’t going to steal your drink. Calm down.”

“You better not. I can handle my alcohol just fine.”

And because Ten likes the idea of famous last words, he builds another somaek train, and the table-slamming game begins again. Taeyong groans internally, wondering when they’ll leave for the next round.

 

Turns out, Taeyong doesn’t make it to the next round. He’s passed out from the three somaek bombs he’s chugged down, face lying in a puddle of somaek, water, and honey and spicy sauce. Jaehyun carefully props his head up by his neck and wipes his face down.

“I’ll bring him back,” he volunteers.

“Okay sounds good!” Johnny calls over his shoulder as he settles the bill with the others. Jaehyun tosses a few green bills at them before collecting Taeyong into a one-armed hug to move the both of them home. Maneuvering into and out of the taxi was challenging, but Jaehyun is stronger than he looks, too. He stops at Taeyong’s building first, discreetly finding Taeyong’s keys in his front pocket and opens the door. He lives in a dorm with two other roommates, and it’s obvious which room is Taeyong’s.

“Why did you have to push yourself so hard? Who’s the idiot now.” Jaehyun mutters under his breath as he tumbles into the room, deposits a passed out Taeyong on his bed, and takes off his shoes for him.

“I’m not….mm...” comes the incoherent, muffled reply.

Jaehyun snorts, ruffling Taeyong’s soft locks. After another moment, he exits the apartment.

  
Taeyong comes to with a start the next morning, jumping out of his skin as much as his heart pounds in his chest. He groans just as quickly, clutching his head and regretting life decisions. With bleary eyes, he reaches for his phone on his bedside table, only to find a glass of water there. He gulps it down and lets the glass slide out of his fingers, wobbling on the hardwood floor.

His hand eventually gains enough energy to reach for his phone again, and he unlocks it with a swipe. He sees a message from Ten, and clicks into it.

Ten  
Hope you got home okay babe

Taeyong frowns. Ten didn’t send him home? Then who did?

Then he notices another message from an unknown number.

010 7155 7500 (please don’t actually call this number I have no idea whose it is)  
Drink the water

What…

Taeyong squints at the number, trying to remember how it got there, but his mind draws a blank. Well, the water is gone now, so he’s already done as he’s told. He gingerly falls back into bed, pulls his covers over his head, and wishes the world stopped spinning.

 

Somewhere in the middle of the day, he hears his room door open, and wakes up enough to peer at the intruder. He blinks.

“What the hell are you doing?” He asks, bewildered.

“What does it look like? I’m checking up on you.” Jaehyun snaps back, rolling his eyes. He’s in his ridiculous Rilakkuma costume again, except the head is on the ground somewhere beside him. What the hell is going on?

“Yeah, I don’t recall giving you permission to come into my room-”

“I brought you water and hot food.”

“On that note, you are now my best friend. Come here, best friend, and give me that water now-” Taeyong makes grabby hands at the glass of water- and notices the glass he’s almost dropped on the floor has disappeared. Did it roll under his bed?

Jaehyun settles the bag of take out kimchi fried rice on his desk, then pulls his chair out to be seated and face him properly.

“How are you feeling?”

Taeyong hums, drinking the water in small sips. “Like shit. Did you bring me home last night?”

Now it’s Jaehyun’s turn to look surprised. “You remembered?”

Taeyong shakes his head, hisses when his vision starts spinning again, then cradles his head with a hand. “No, but since you’re here, I assumed you… that it was you.”

He misses the way Jaehyun almost reaches out for his forehead.

“Ah. Yeah, that’s a good guess.”

“Did you join up with the others after? Or did you go home? Sorry if I ruined your night.”

Jaehyun rolls his eyes, crossing his arms. Damn those disgusting biceps.“Gotta say, I’ve never seen someone fall asleep that quickly after their third drink before.”

Taeyong makes a face. “Are you calling me weak?”

“You should’ve let me drink for you.”

“I can handle… well, okay, I can’t handle too much alcohol, but honestly, it’s fine.”

A vein pops out of Jaehyun’s forehead. “You idiot,” he grumbles, flicking Taeyong’s forehead with unexpected gentleness.

Taeyongs still milks it for all its worth. “Ow. Why were you tasked with taking me home if you’re not even gonna take proper care of me?”

“Says the person who threw caution to the wind and got himself smashed.”

“It was a one time thing.”

“I know.”

The admission comes out a little creepy, and Taeyong lets Jaehyun know of this fact.

The creases between Jaehyun’s eyebrows deepen. “Take better care of yourself then. Something could’ve happened to you.”

Taeyong rolls his eyes and places the cup on his bedside table. He reaches for his phone instead.

“I’m going to assume the number who texted to tell me to drink the water was you?”

Jaehyun frowns. “What of it?”

Taeyong avoids his eyes, looking at the ridiculous Rilakkuma head sitting on his floor instead. “Deleting. This is officially creepy. Get out of my room.”

Jaehyun takes a step forward. “I’m just trying to make sure you’re okay.”

Taeyong shakes his head, and his vision doesn’t spin anymore. “I’m good. Honestly, I’m great. Thanks for the food, and the water, but I’m not going to keel over and die from a hangover. I’m a college student, let me live a little.”

As he says this he remembers the bend of ears, the big button eyes, and he gasps.

“Mr. Bear.”

“What?”

“...Nothing.”

If Mr. Bear was a Rilakkuma, then what does that make Jaehyun? He furrows his brows, wondering why he’s trying to figure out a connection between his childhood stuffed animal and the man in a bear costume sitting across from him in his chair, room, and apartment. Jaehyun looks unconvinced, and Taeyong’s honestly a little tired of this mother-hen-ing, so he doesn’t retaliate when Jaehyun places a warm hand on his forehead, like that helps with relieving a headache. (It doesn’t, but somehow the sentiment makes Taeyong grow warm anyway, forcing him to wonder if he’s actually gone down with something.)

“You’re turning red.”

“Must be the water.”

“I’m pretty sure that’s not how it works.”

“Maybe I just need more rest,” Taeyong says, eyeing pointedly at the door.

Finally, Jaehyun sighs and rises to his feet.

Then Taeyong realizes what this is all about. “Wait! Before you go, and I know this sounds tropey, but I kissed you last night, didn’t I?”

Jaehyun blinks confused. “No.”

Taeyong also blinks confused. “Then… you’re taking care of me because you want to?”

“I… obviously, what were you thinking?”

Taeyong flinches back. “Nothing. Hangover talk. You can hardly blame me. I gotta sleep now.”

Jaehyun shakes his head. “... okay. Rest well.”

The door closes softly behind Jaehyun and Taeyong tries to stop his heart from racing.

It’s a kind gesture, isn’t it? Making sure he’s hydrated, bringing food- oh hell.

He rushes out of bed, almost tripping over his bed covers. Jaehyun’s slipped on his shoes and is about to head out the door when he throws himself onto the other.

“Wait!”

Jaehyun goes down kind of hilariously, like he lost all energy in one second. He catches himself before he falls, however, and he turns to glare at Taeyong. “What?”

Taeyong frowns. “Why are you getting all pissy?”

“I don’t know, because someone I genuinely care for is being an ass?”

“I… okay, maybe I had that coming. I’m sorry. I just didn’t.. I didn’t know.”

“Didn’t know what?”

Taeyong chews his lip, measuring out the next words in his mind before he speaks. “Do you want to hang out sometime?”

“What?”

“Like, you know, hanging out. Maybe without the Rilakkuma suit though. That’s glaringly obvious from miles away.”

For the second time, Jaehyun frowns, turning his body this way and that, as if examining his costume. “You don’t like it?”

“It reminds me too much of a stuffed toy I had as a kid. Also you forgot your head on my floor.”

“Oh yeah.” Jaehyun toes off his shoes and goes to fetch his costume head, but Taeyong’s hand on his arm stops him from walking.

“I didn’t have an answer yet,” he reminds, hoping his gut feeling isn’t wrong.

The following seconds feel like hours, and Taeyong’s poor heart is going into warp speed with how fast it’s pounding in his chest. He almost feels faint.

Jaehyun turns to him with a small, wry smile. “Took you long enough to figure out.”

Taeyong glares, furiously embarrassed. “You could’ve just said something.”

“I didn’t even know if you liked me… you do like me, right?”

“I… I think so.”

“This isn’t the hangover talking?”

“I sure hope not, I’ve always thought you were cute.”

Jaehyun’s face brightens, and his lips pull into a teasing smile. How did that happen so quickly? “Really now.”

“That’s dangerous,” Taeyong claims, pointing at his face. “You’re dangerous. Get out of my apartment. I need to sleep this off and really reconsider my life choices.”

“None involving me, I hope.”

“As long as you don’t suddenly reveal that you’re my guardian bear angel,” Taeyong narrows his eyes, like challenging Jaehyun to do just that. But Jaehyun looks back with innocent eyes, and Taeyong lets out a little huff. “I just need to straighten my thoughts and feelings out. I’ll text you.”

“Hah, straighten.” Jaehyun smirks.

“Hah, not funny.” Taeyong gives his best deadpan, which actually isn’t that hard to achieve when he’s hungover, he realizes.

“Alright, I’ll get the head and leave you be then. But before I go-” In a quick fumble of movements, Jaehyun flips the position of their hands so that now he’s got an arm wrapped loosely around Taeyong’s waist, another hand on his hip. “Mind if I stole your first kiss?”

Taeyong’s eyes widen. “How did you know?”

Jaehyun smirks and swoops closer. “I just do.”

And before Taeyong pulls back from an overwhelming indignance of being such an open book, Jaehyun presses their lips together in a gentle kiss, then he steps back.

“You just… kissed me.”

“I’m also almost done putting my shoes on and out the door again, snap out of it.”

Taeyong turns to Jaehyun’s new location by the door, wearing a mildly unimpressed expression. He feels his cheeks burn even more. “It was my first kiss!”

Jaehyun shrugs. “I know.”

Taeyong frowns. “That’s creepy too.”

Jaehyun snorts. “Okay, fine. I’ll stop.”

“You’re weird.”

“You’ve said this.”

Apropos of nothing, Taeyong launches into Jaehyun, enveloping him in a tight glomp. It shouldn’t feel familiar, he’s never done this before, and yet it does. “I’ll text you,” he promises. And maybe there’s some emotions in his eyes too, because whatever Jaehyun sees makes him smile and press a kiss on Taeyong’s forehead.

“Take care.”

Taeyong tilts his head so their lips meet.

“I will.”

 

The next time Jaehyun and Taeyong travel back from Daejeon to Seoul, they end up stopping by Taeyong's parent's place so Taeyong can drop off his pack. Jaehyun hesitates by the door, but Taeyong drags him in and seats him on the bed, where he meets the big, round eyes of Rilakkuma, and pauses.

Meanwhile, Taeyong dutifully puts his clothes away and checks the fridge to see if there's any food he can bum off before his mother catches him.

Jaehyun pets the Rilakkuma on the head once, grins with dimples and all, and goes out to find his boyfriend.

That afternoon, they meet up with Taeyong's childhood friend Yuta, his boyfriend Hansol, and Jaehyun's two friends Doyoung and Sicheng, and they all go to the summer carnival.

Taeyong pulls Jaehyun from stand to stand, using his puppy eyes to coerce Jaehyun to win him all the stuffed toys he can carry. Turns out, apart from shooting the hoops (which won him a small stuffed toy puppy), Jaehyun was pretty bad at games. Instead, he pulled Taeyong to the food stalls and stuffed themselves silly with bungeoppang, tteokbokki, twister potato, and japchae.

As they leave the carnival premise that evening, Taeyong catches Jaehyun's eyes linger a little too long on an orangutan plushie and grins to himself.

"Wait here," he orders.

Shooting game? Perfect. Time to show off his family genes.

That night, Jaehyun walks home with one armful of a soft orangutan and another armful of soft Taeyong, and feels like the biggest winner. He apologizes to Taeyong for not winning him anything but Taeyong shakes his head and says he's already got the best Rilakkuma (Yuta makes loud gagging noises in the background, which Taeyong promptly ignores). They pull in for one last goodnight kiss before going separate ways back home.

Before Taeyong goes to sleep, he hugs his childhood Rilakkuma close, and wishes for dreams of a man with caramel hair, fair skin, and deep brown eyes.

 


	6. piercing

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Pairing: Jaeyong, side Kris x Tao  
> Rating: Teens and up  
> AN: This was written in 2017, long before Taeyong rocked piercings. I figured I would post it eventually, but forgot about it in light of other stories... so here it is now :) I understand this is a reference-heavy story, so please google Kris, Tao, and refer to these links to see what I'm trying to describe: [alchemy tattoo inspo](https://www.instagram.com/okanuckun), [snake tattoo inspo](https://www.instagram.com/mirkosata), [Jaehyun's outfit](https://youtu.be/C16bgHXs8KQ). Comments + questions are always welcome <3

“Did it hurt?”

Yuta rolls his eyes, feeling his patience draining fast with the wide-eyed man in front of him. “We’ve been through this.” He replies exasperatedly.

“I know, but I just want to make sure-”

“Do I look like a broken record? Yes, they  _ all hurt _ . There’s a needle going through your flesh, of course it hurts. But the pain isn’t terrible, it heals quickly if you treat it properly, and it’s reversible most of the time.”

Taeyong’s intense gaze wavers again. He looks across the classroom at Johnny, more specifically at his pierced ear, and remembers, faintly, of why he wanted a piercing in the first place.

Yuta catches the puppy eyes and doesn’t need to follow his gaze to know who he’s looking at. He exhales loudly, crossing his arms.

“You’re getting a piercing of your own volition. It’s your decision.”

“I know…”

Yuta rolls his eyes and stealthily packs his bag. “Then it’s settled. I have soccer practice now. I’m leaving.”

Taeyong whips his head back to his friend with wide eyes as his hand shoots out to catch Yuta’s sleeve. “Wait, I thought you were coming-!”

Yuta shakes his head and slithers out of Taeyong’s grip with practiced ease. “Nope. I’ve heard enough whining and complaining to last the year, and that’s  _ your  _ whining. You  _ never _ stop. Consider yourself lucky. If it was anyone else I would’ve been gone by now.” He ruffles Taeyong’s mop of caramel hair and turns heels, leaving Taeyong to grumble about useless friends. “Just get it over with, you big baby!” He yells over his shoulder, and a few classmates look their way.

But not Johnny, who is currently talking to an underclassman, a foreigner from Thailand, and all fifty of his piercings. Something churns in the pit of Taeyong’s stomach, and he’s not sure if it’s because of their proximity, friendship, or the piercings. They both look so… cool.  _ And Johnny is so handsome _ , his mind supplies, completely unhelpful. Even with his dyed hair and coloured lens-wearing tendencies, Taeyong still feels like he’s not good enough.

Yuta would roll his eyes at one of his many self-deprecating rants. It happened one night in his dorm, when they made it halfway through a bottle of fireball mixed with apple cider, celebrating Taeyong’s victory in a dance competition. Cupping his face with two hands, Yuta told his best friend to look in the mirror, objectively, and ask himself if he’s really got the short end of the stick, you unconfident idiot.

Taeyong did, and does, often, and it’s not what he wants to see. He tells Yuta as much, and gets a hard flick on the forehead.

Then he belts out  _ You’re Beautiful  _ and Taeyong shoves the pizza box into his friend’s face to stop him from the horrible off-tune singing.

_ Just get it over with. It’s reversible. _

He’s wanted it for a while now. And he’s never changed his mind. So… he won’t change his mid for the next while, too. That’s sound logic, right? With his mind made up, Taeyong packs his bag with unmatched courage and determination, and leaves school.

The walk to the tattoo shop is a short one, and soon Taeyong arrives at its dark exterior. On the window is an imprinted tiger, standing tall on boulder and shrubbery, with peonies and its stripes intertwined and blended to the ground. Its unwavering gaze pulls Taeyong in despite the nervous energy that twists at his insides.

With a deep breath, Taeyong steels his resolve and pushes the door open.

At first, he is greeted with the sound of buzzing and the smell of disinfectant… soap? The shop is empty save for the raven-haired man at the counter, head bowed probably looking at something on his phone. Taeyong clears his throat and walks closer. The man looks up and Taeyong meets the signature silver eyes of Huang Zitao, the infamous tattoo artist and co-owner of the shop, and so arrestingly beautiful Taeyong forgets to breathe.

But if there’s one thing Taeyong has learned from stalking his Instagram account, it’s that Tao-

The man all but skips around the counter to pull Taeyong’s hands in his, eyes crinkling and lips curling into a wide cheshire grin. “O.M.G. you’re so cute!!! What’s your name?”

Well. Tao’s gap-moe is off the fucking charts.

Taeyong smiles wobbly. “It’s Taeyong.”

“I’m Tao, owner and tattoo artist of this place.” Tao grins and eyes Taeyong up and down, then pulls him other to the waiting area and ushers him onto the couch. “Would you like something to drink? We have tea, coffee, almond milk, water.”

“Uhm, water is fine, thanks.”

Tao nods and makes his way behind the counter. “So, what are you here for today? We normally don’t accept walk-ins unless it’s for piercings, but I might make an exception for you.”

“Actually, I was thinking of getting a piercing,” Taeyong explains.

Tao makes a noise of acknowledgment, and comes back with some papers, a clipboard, pen, and a cup of water in the other hand. He settles beside Taeyong again, and hands over the forms. In such close proximity, Taeyong is once again stunned by the arresting beauty of Tao, and feels his face redden a little. “Here are some disclaimer forms. Sign and date them for me please. Where are you planning to get a piercing?”

The water helps a little and Taeyong, feeling less nervous, tries for an easy smile. “Just the left earlobe.”

Tao’s hand tilts Taeyong’s chin slightly, and he squints his eyes as though scrutinizing his ear. Despite the slight invasion of personal space, Taeyong obediently tips his head. “Stud or hoop? And are you allergic to anything?”

Taeyong shakes his head. “I don’t think so, but I’ve never had any piercings before so I can’t say for sure… and I’ll go with a stud.”

Tao smiles reassuringly, scribbles something down on the sticky note, and gestures Taeyong to finish the paperwork. “Don’t worry, it won’t hurt too much. And I’ll tell Jae to be especially gentle with a cutie like you.” He winks and gives Taeyong’s tense shoulder a firm squeeze. “I’ll be right back.”

Then he goes off, presumably to find ‘Jae’. Taeyong lets out a breath he doesn’t realize he’s holding, and turns back to the clipboard. His palms are starting to sweat.

In a minute or so, he finishes the form and looks around the shop. He expected the walls to be covered with drawings, and there are a few framed on the wall behind the counter, but the rest are painted in a clean matte off-white, giving off a clean, inviting vibe. On the coffee table in front of him are a couple binders. He reaches for one and flips through some pages, if only to give something for his hands to do.

They’re binders of tattoo designs, of course. The first section is filled with small flower tattoos meant for ears, fingers, wrists and ankles. Delicate line work for intimate locations. He hums in quiet appreciation as his eyes follow the designs, absorbing the different styles and illustrations.

He makes it halfway to the middle when something catches his eyes. At the bottom, between a peony and a rose, is a small dragon, composed of thin black lines and minimal light grey shading. Its eyes are fierce and intense, but not scary, and its body a loose curl, claws extended. The lines are tight, the eyes reflecting an alluring personality, commanding with a hint of mischief. Taeyong finds himself tracing the lines with his index finger before he even realizes.

“It’s quite beautiful, isn’t it?”

He looks up quickly, hand withdrawing, and meets warm brown eyes.

The man in front of him wears an easy smile, with brown tresses framing a pale face. He’s wearing a light blue shirt tucked into a pair of black slacks, with black suspenders and black Doc Marten’s completing the outfit. On his forearms, just below the elbows are two tattoos- but it’s hard to make out the details from the distance. Taeyong notices another ink licking the collar of his shirt, and he tears his eyes away before he gets caught staring.

Needless to say, this man is… very handsome.

So handsome, that Taeyong briefly wonders if Tao and Kris, the other owner and Tao’s partner, chose their employees based on appearance.

He shakes his head and manages a small smile. “Yeah, it’s pretty.”

The pink lips pull into a wider smile, and that is when Taeyong notices the dimples. His heart skips a beat. “Tao told me you’re here for a piercing though, right?” The man says, eyes looking at the binder in his hands questioningly.

“Yeah. This isn’t- I was just looking. That’s all.” Taeyong quickly closes the binder and stands up. “I’m ready. Now. For my piercing.”

Jae nods, smile still firmly in place, and motions Taeyong to follow him. “This way.”

They go through a narrow hall, curtains covering each doorway, the sound of buzzing muffled and constant. Jae enters a room and Taeyong follows, then he draws the curtains closed and gestures Taeyong to sit on a tall cushioned chair, much like one at the doctor’s office.

Jae collects the tools while Taeyong looks around the room and tries to not fidget. When Jae settles in front of him and reaches for his left ear, he flinches away. The shock is apparent on both of their faces, but Jae smiles warmly again and Taeyong looks away, feeling a blush creeping on his cheeks and his heart doing weird things in his chest.

“So, I heard this is your first piercing. Left lobe, silver stud. Yeah?” Jae’s voice is low and quiet beside his ear.

Taeyong stiffens and nods in response, not trusting his voice. He catches the scent of Jae’s cologne, something floral and musky, and it takes his mind off the piercing for a moment.

Jae pauses, and shoots him a measured look. “Taeyong?”

“Yeah?” Comes the shaky answer. Ugh, he can't even recognize his own voice.

“I’m going to draw a dot on your ear. Let me know if the position looks right.”

Taeyong nods and unconsciously stares the hooded eyes as Jae leans in a little, making a mark with practiced ease and hands over a mirror. Taeyong takes a long look, brows furrowed and eyes sharp and critical. It… looks good.

He nods robotically, handing the mirror back, before clasping his hands in his lap. Jae smiles and prepares the needle. Taeyong eyes warily at the weapon of choice, but then his eyes get caught on the inks on Jae’s forearm, and he studies those instead.

From this distance, the details become clear and captivating all at once. On one arm is a pair of snakes forming an ouroboros with thin-lined geometry behind. The other is an alchemist circle split by more geometry and lines, and three letters- N, C, and T in smaller circles. Both tattoos are black, done in clean linework and minimal shading.

He quickly looks away when Jae clears his throat. “Say, Taeyong. Are you free this Friday?”

“Huh-What?”

Taeyong meets Jae’s eyes and feels his heart stop.

Jae’s expression shifts from lighthearted fun and professional to something darker, and Taeyong feels his pulse quicken. Jae leans in a little, one hand reaching up to gently trace the shell of Taeyong’s ear, and eyes that were once warm and inviting become sharp and downright sexy. The smell of cologne becomes stronger and, somehow, smells  _ sexy _ . In fact, everything about Jae oozes sex appeal right then. He flashes a smile that makes Taeyong blush bright red, and ducks slightly to the side to whisper in his ear, “Are you free this Friday?”

Taeyong shivers from the sound… and proximity, and opens and closes his mouth, no reply forthcoming. He has never, in his entire life, been on the receiving end of… whatever this is. Or giving end. Any end, really.

Jae pulls back slightly, lips curling into what can only be described as a seductive smile, voice low and sultry. “Do you want to watch a movie together?”

Taeyong feels his heart pounding in his chest as he rattles his useless brain to think of something. Anything. Anything that didn’t involve tongues, lips, or other body parts and oh god his blood is going south-

And in that moment, he feels a tiny prick through his ear.

Jae swiftly wipes the punctured hole clean, pops the stud in, twists the back shut, and  _ moves the fuck away  _ from Taeyong’s personal space. The motion took a lot less time than describing it, and he looks rather satisfied with his handiwork.

“W-oww?!”

Taeyong’s expression is one of pure shock, eyes wide and locked on the other man, feeling a mess of embarrass arousal and betrayal.

For a moment, neither of them move. They stare at each other unblinking, in a stand-still, until Jae breaks with a small, apologetic smile. With dimples. And none of that seductive aura. Then all at once, Taeyong feels more annoyed at the man in front of him than anyone else in his entire life. No one so apologetic should look so handsome.

“What the  _ fuck I TRUSTED YOU!”  _ He hisses.

Jae coughs and ducks his head to avoid Taeyong’s accusing glare. “It didn’t hurt though, did it?”

Taeyong sputters his next words. “That’s completely besides the point! What- who are you?-”

The man looks back apologetically, but his gaze is strong and purposeful. “Jaehyun. 20. Illustration graduate. Non-smoker, moderate drinker, cat owner.” Jaehyun pauses, assessing Taeyong’s ear with a critical look, then breaks into a small hesitant smile.  _ That dimple... _ “You looked nervous, so I thought I could distract you with something. And you were, well, staring at me very intently, so I figured my proposition wouldn’t be too out of the place.” He quickly and cleanly disposes the needle, and Taeyong notices his cheeks colouring slightly when he turns back. “I’m sorry if I read the situation wrong, and you don’t appreciate this attention…”

Taeyong sputters, feeling dizzy and head overheating from the blush. “I-I wasn’t staring!”

Jaehyun’s lips quirk to one side, looking like he wanted to mention something but bites it back.

Taeyong feels himself getting annoyed again.

“In that case, my question still stands. Are you free on Friday for a movie date?”

Rejection is on the tip of Taeyong’s tongue, his fingers are itching to either slap or draw the smirking face closer, which is just ridiculous. But Jaehyun is right. He was so distracted that he didn’t feel anything, and he’s probably too flustered to feel the residual pain.

Against his better judgment, he lets out an annoyed huff and shrugs.

“Your treat. And I want crepes too.”

Jaehyun laughs and oh- but there are the dimples again. “Deal.”

As Jaehyun moves away to grab a small piece of paper that highlights how to take care of the new piercing, Taeyong checks his piercing in the mirror on the wall. The small silver stud stands out against his skin, and he briefly wonders if he feels closer to Johnny and the other boy, Ten, like he thought he would. But that… isn’t the case.

He looks back at the tattoos on Jaehyun’s arms, a new idea forms. But he quickly averts his eyes before Jaehyun notices.

In that moment, Tao’s head pops through the curtains and surveys the scene in front of him. “All done?”

Taeyong nods and Tao approaches, eyes searching. Taeyong turns his head and presents the silver stud. Without preamble, Tao leans in a bit too close and squints at Jaehyun’s handiwork, as one would the homework of a child. Talk about having zero concept of personal space. Taeyong wills the blush to dissipate and ignores Jaehyun, who is leaning against the wall across from him, arms crossed and watching Taeyong fidget under Tao’s hands, amused by the sight if his smirk is anything to go by.

“Jae does good work, doesn’t he?”

Taeyong meets Jaehyun’s cheshire grin with a scowl. “He has his ways, I guess.”

Tao smiles at this, then steps away from Taeyong to look at Jaehyun as well. “ It might be his first piercing, but it looks clean and well treated. Good job.”

Tao clasps Jaehyun’s shoulder and they share an easy smile, and Taeyong gapes at the two.

“...first...piercing…?” He grinds out slowly, painfully.

Tao laughs at the incredulous look on Taeyong’s face. “Well, I mean, he’s been my apprentice for two weeks now. Don’t worry, I don’t let just anyone work on a client at this shop, you know?”

He winks at Taeyong, who ducks his reddening face, but Taeyong’s eyes travel back to Jaehyun’s disarming smile, he scowls further.

Tao claps his hands. “Alright! If you don’t have any other questions, I’ll get you some glycerin soap up at the front, and give you a quick rundown of how to clean the piercing.”

Taeyong is about to nod when Jaehyun casually interjects, “He was looking at a tattoo when I went out to get him just now.” Taeyong shoots a murderous look at Jaehyun’s straight face. This little shit-

Tao’s silver eyes light up as he catches Taeyong’s shoulders with vise-like claws while the latter shakes his head vehemently, sweat rolling down his back. “No. No no no don’t listen to him-”

“Which one?”

Jaehyun looks nonchalant as he checks his nails, completely ignoring the death glares that Taeyong is shooting at his face. “Page 12, the small dragon between a peony and a rose.”

Tao’s eyes widen in recognition. “Didn’t you-”

Taeyong tries to backtrack, arms waving wildly. “I was  _ just _ looking. I hardly had the guts to get this piercing. I’m not ready for a tattoo-”

Tao turns his puppy eyes to Taeyong, intertwining their fingers in a smooth motion and pulls the younger man closer. “It’s such a small one, it’ll probably take an hour max.” He pleads, his eyes bearing into Taeyong’s soul so much that Taeyong has a hard time looking away.

“Well, I just-” He stammers.

“Please? Pretty please? It’ll look so good on you!” Tao gushes.

Jaehyun, who was previously watching the situation unfold with an amused grin, decides to step in after seeing Taeyong shoot a helpless look over Tao’s shoulder. Plus, Tao’s getting a little too handsy- which definitely won’t help with repeating visits from customers.

“Tao, why don’t we give some time for Taeyong to think about this first?” Jaehyun suggests, the hand on Tao’s forearm asserting more force than strictly necessary, and Tao finally backs off, big pout in place.

“Fine. It’s a decision you shouldn’t make so spontaneously…” he concedes, peeling his hands off Taeyong, who lets out a sigh of relief. “But-” He turns and shoots a haughty look at Jaehyun. “If you do decide to get one, I’m going to make Jae give it to you for free. And it’ll be the best work he’ll do.”

Jaehyun looks alarmed. “What-”

Tao shakes his head. “You don’t go around seducing clients before giving them piercings, Jae. Think of all the shit-talk we’ll get on our Yelp page from all the customers you toyed with. You need to learn your lesson.”

Taeyong, who was previously watching this exchange with mute interest, blushes bright red again. God, is there a camera in the room? How did Tao find out?

Meanwhile, Jaehyun laughs sheepishly and nods. “Fine, you’re the boss, I’ll do as you say.”

Taeyong watches the two with a dark, unamused expression. He turns to Tao and says, “I seriously hope this isn’t a part of your business plan-” Then he turns his attention to Jaehyun, “And you better not pull the same shit, or I swear I will find ways to make you regret it.”

He glare speaks volumes, but it was his tone that makes anything Jaehyun wants to say die in his throat, and a hand moves instinctively to cover his family jewels. He nods immediately.

“I have no part in this. I’m just the owner of this shop. And I’ve already reprimanded Jae.” Tao raises his hands in mock surrender, even though his eyes are curving into wide crescents. “Let’s ring you up now, okay?”

With a huff, Taeyong follows Tao to the front where he pays and receives the instructions for taking care of the new piercing. All the while, Jaehyun follows hesitantly, too afraid to speak but too invested to walk away. When Tao finishes, he excuses himself to the back room where he ‘has business to take care of’, leaving an anxious Jaehyun with an annoyed Taeyong.

Jaehyun opens his mouth to speak first. “This isn’t a business tactic. I didn’t say that because of work-”

Taeyong meets his eyes squarely, eyebrow raised. Jaehyun holds his gaze, trying to convey his sincerity and regret:

“I’m sorry.”

In another tense moment, neither move. Then Taeyong sighs and rubs the back of his neck before making up his mind.

“Jaehyun?”

“...Yeah?”

“I’ll let you know when I’m free.”

Jaehyun looks confused for a moment, then his eyes widen and catches Jaehyun’s phone reflexively with two hands like a precious gift. His wide eyes look back at Taeyong, who looks at him expectantly, then he types in his number, eyes darting between the phone and reading Taeyong’s face. He quickly hands it back to the owner, whose outstretched hand and small frown makes him do something he has never done- again.

His hand quickly loops around Taeyong’s around his phone in a loose but firm grip. Taeyong feels the warmth envelop around his hand and looks at Jaehyun surprisingly, eyes searching. He frowns and looks at their hands again, then tugs a little, but Jaehyun doesn’t budge.

“Thank you. For giving me a chance. I’ll wait for  your call.” Jaehyun finishes with a nervous smile, gives his hand a soft squeeze, and lets go.

It is one of those moments where anything Taeyong says would likely give the wrong impression, so he opts for a crooked smile and exits the shop. He doesn’t catch how Jaehyun looks dazedly at the door for a few moments longer, Tao cackling in the background, teasing his poor apprentice, and Kris poking his head out of the curtains to tell his boyfriend to kindly shut the hell up, please and thank you.


End file.
